Rounding Up the Bolts 2013 Season

All you need to know about the Chargers' thrilling 2013 season.

Here is all you need to know about the Chargers’ thrilling 2013 season:

Key Numbers

32,369- The number of career passing yards in Philip Rivers’ career. He surpassed the 30,000-mark against the Jacksonville Jaguars, becoming just the 37th player ever to top that plateau and only the second Charger, joining Dan Fouts (43,040). He reached the milestone in his 123rd game, the fifth fastest ever.

4,478– Philip Rivers passing yards for the season, which ranked fifth in the NFL.

1,965 – Total rushing yards gained on offense.

1,255 – Yards rushed by Ryan Mathews, ranking seventh in the NFL and second in the AFC.

1,046 – Yards receiving by Keenan Allen, the first rookie to top 1,000 in the air since A.J. Green in 2011.

393.3 – Total yards per game averaged on offense, ranking fifth in the NFL.

Ladarius Green’s 60-yard TD sprint vs. the Chiefs, the first of his career -

Top Quotes

“I think the way we finished and what we did in the first year with this new staff and really new team –we’ve got a lot of new guys – it’s set the foundation for what hopefully is going to be a tear here getting into the tournament in consecutive years,” said the quarterback. “You’re never guaranteed that…. We have a lot of young guys who got a lot of valuable experience and a lot of young guys who are going to be young guys next year but yet played a lot of football this year. So our team is only going to get better. I can’t see how we won’t get better in the next six months and have a chance to be even better next year.” – Philip Rivers on team’s bright future.

“His constancy and his belief in each individual player on each side of the ball is amazing. His belief in the team and his confidence he instills in everyone, it means the world to know you have a head coach who will back you up and thinks the world of you. And he is understanding. He knows what this league is all about and he wants what’s best for us as players. So he has done an unbelievable job and it will only get better in the future.” – Eric Weddle on Head Coach Mike McCoy

“Let’s face it – last year at this time and even in training camp we had no identity. We were brand new and nobody knew what to expect. And early on in the season you could tell we had an identity. They all took Mike’s message and ran with it… I think what we saw this year was for whatever we are or are not, we are physically and mentally tough, and are a gritty team with a lot of resolve. You saw that from game one all the way through to the Denver game. Guys never gave up no matter what the circumstances. We won nine games and the seven we lost I think they were probably all one score games, other than maybe the Oakland game up there. It's probably rare to go through a year where it happens like that. I think we saw that the effort, grittiness and toughness every week was there and that is hard to find sometimes." – General Manager Tom Telesco on the team’s identity

“Philip means a lot to this team because he is the leader of this ball club. When you have a guy like that, you’re talking about a guy who has the qualities to help you through the tough times. He makes it a lot easier for everyone around him. That’s what sticks out the most to me about him. Not only is he the quarterback but he is our leader and he makes the game a lot easier for everyone around him. For me, that’s the true test of what he means to our team. We drafted him believing he can carry us to wins, and he’s done that. I remember one game we had once against Houston, he carried the whole team. We only won because of him. When I think of him in general, not only do I think of a quarterback and a guy who leads this team, but in my mind, he’s a friend too. When it comes to Philip, I feel lucky to have been a part of someone like him. When I look back at my career many, many years from now I will have felt lucky to have gone through this all with him.” – Antonio Gates on what Philip Rivers means to him.

“Just to have that moment to lock the game in and feel clutch and have the stadium erupt around you, and that bit of psychological warfare that kickers go through, that was a big moment for him. It was a momentous moment. It was big for him and for us as a team. We have all the confidence in him as does the coaching staff to go out there and kick a 50-yarder to ice the game. That’s awesome. That was unbelievable for him, and us, and we couldn’t be happier for him with all he’s been through to get to this point in his career.” – Nick Hardwick on Nick Novak’s 50-yard field goal vs. Indianapolis.

“Coach gives me the opportunity to call those things when I see it,” Weddle said. “I was looking to see the (Chiefs’) look – whether the corners were going to come in at all like they did earlier in the game, and they didn’t. With that look I felt like we could get two yards as a punt team with me running the ball. If we are going to go down, let’s go down doing what we do and that’s playing aggressive until the end. We got just enough.” - Eric Weddle on his fake punt against the Chiefs.

“This was a huge, huge win especially where we are at in the season and where we are as an organization. Coach coming back for the first time and getting him that win, which was something. We are all obviously really happy to get this ‘W’”. – Donald Butler on Week 15 primetime win in Denver.

Most Popular

Guidelines: Please keep your comments relevant to the topic and appropriate. Abusive or combatant comments towards other fans will not be tolerated and will be removed from display on this site. Use the "Report Abuse" link to help keep the Chargers community at its best.